Cherry Season
If you want to grow cherries, you’ll need two different trees that pollinate one another. Choose varieties appropriate for your hardiness zone and required chill hours.
Tiny Fuji apples from our first harvest. Didn't thin - how else can you fit 7 apples in one hand?
Thinning Fruit on Apple Trees
Every gardener does it. We get so excited about impending fruit that we don't do what's best for the tree. We see all those tiny blossoms, then tiny orbs, and we stop using our rational brain in hopes of more, more, more. Thinning fruit from our fruit trees ensures larger fruit and a healthier tree. Young trees often become misshapen when they are laden down with more fruit than their branches can bear. So let's review techniques for thinning fruit…
The unit comes with several tip options. We like the brass sprayer (beware of lead, though).
New Toy: Compost Tea Sprayer
Last year after taking Dr. Elaine Ingham's Soil Food Web intensive, I ran out and purchased a piston-pump sprayer to take my compost tea to the next level. Compost tea is great for plant roots and soil health, but it also makes a great foliar feed (using said compost tea sprayer). Plants respond with a jump in growth, and a reduction in surface- or soil-born fungal infestations. Since tomato season is here, and blight is never far behind here in…
Where’s Gardenerd – New Orleans, Louisiana
Mr. Nerd made his way from Northern California to New Orleans this month, where he visited Eugene Arceneaux. Doesn't that name just scream New Orleans? We love to see the slices of cross-culture Mr. Nerd experiences on his travels. What's growing in Louisiana right now? Let's find out. Mr. Nerd kept Eugene company while Eugene planted his tomatoes, peppers, bush beans and more. He starts his seeds in seed trays, then transplants them to red Solo cups (roomy enough for…
Earth Day Apps
E-waste recycling is an important way to keep hazardous waste and recyclable products out of our landfills.
Stopping Sow Bugs
Sow bugs can be beneficial to the garden (or at least your compost bin) because they till the soil and are part of the Soil food web. But they are a problem because they eat decaying matter. But they also love strawberries.
Monarch on a happy milkweed plant
Ask Gardenerd: Milkweed for New York?
A question came into Ask Gardenerd this week about milkweed plants and seeds: "Could you please recommend a reliable source to buy African milkweed? I would like to grow some in Rochester NY. Is this the correct kind for my area, by the way? Thank you, Julia Joshpe" Hi Julia, while African Milkweed is beautiful and fun to grow, it's not a native milkweed in New York. Take heart, though. We found a site that has plenty of recommendations for…
Gardenerd on Hallmark’s Home and Family Show 4-13-16
It's been three years since my last appearance on the Hallmark Home and Family Show, and I'm happy to return this Wednesday (it repeats on Thursday, so I am told) to share information with you about growing sunflowers for pollinators. Tune in Wednesday, April 13, 2016 at 10 a.m./ 9 a.m. central for fun and flowers as we discuss bee-friendly gardens, why pollinators are important, and how to grow sunflowers for color, pollen, and food. The photo above was taken…
Swarm Season
The queen takes a little more than half the worker bees and moves to a new location, leaving behind enough food and potential queen cells to hatch and lead after she’s gone.
22 different tomato seedlings under grow lights.
Wordless Wednesday: April Garden
They say April showers bring May flowers, but it's more like February rains bring April abundance here in Los Angeles. Color and new life reign supreme in the April garden, as we transition from winter to summer crops in a flash. It's time to plant warm-weather crops in warm-winter climates. Here's a look at what's growin' on in our Test Garden. Enjoy your April garden and get out there and plant something!